Some Brother
by Tiquismiquis
Summary: "A date?" Rolf's head shot up from his textbook so fast it was a wonder he didn't topple over. "Oscar got a date? A real date?"


_Author's note: A FERP Secret Santa gift for my recipient! I hope it's all right: it's got Oscar, Oscar cooking, Oscar/Astrid, and The Brothers._

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><p>"Hey. Um. I don't suppose you could both be out of the house tonight, somehow, could you?"<p>

Boyd, slouched into the back of their beat-up couch, looked up from his phone and into Oscar's face. His brother sat down next to him almost gingerly, back straight. He looked tired. Oscar always looked tired. Boyd supposed, with him about to finish high school and Rolf just starting it and Oscar supporting the three of them, that made sense.

"Why?" he asked.

"I invited Astrid over for dinner."

"Yeah? How come Rolf and I gotta be gone? We like Astrid." Plus that meant Oscar would put extra effort into cooking, and he was damn fine at it even on a regular day. Boyd looked back over his shoulder at his little bro, who was at the kitchen table and actually doing homework like a nerd.

"No. Boyd. I invited her over for dinner."

Boyd raised an eyebrow and considered refusing, just to be difficult. But then, he couldn't remember a time when Oscar had ever asked a solid of him before. Oscar was always doing. Always giving. And he and Rolf took. Oscar did such a good job stepping up after Mom and Dad were gone that Boyd never really thought about how difficult it must've been, until a couple years passed and he started getting tastes of what the adult world was like. (For the record, he didn't like it one bit.)

"So," Boyd said. "It's a date."

"A date?" Rolf's head shot up from his textbook so fast it was a wonder he didn't topple over. "Oscar got a date? A real date?"

"With a real, actual person!"

"Ooh, Oscar's got a girlfriend!"

"Oscar and Astrid, sittin' in a tree!"

"See," their target sighed as he stood, "this is why I need you both gone. You can't behave."

"Aww, Oscar, we'll behave!" Rolf hooked his chin over the edge of his chair. "I promise. We won't tell Astrid you want to be her boyfriend."

Boyd sniggered, but "Getting Oscar Mad" was a game he and Rolf rarely won. Their brother remained as composed as always.

"It's a little more complicated than that, Rolf, but thank you."

"All right, all right," said Boyd as he stood, too. "We'll get our own dinner. Dinner and a movie. What do you want to see, kid?"

"I'm not a kid!"

"Answer the question or I'm picking."

"Fine! The new Lord of the Rings movie."

"What? That stuff's for nerds!"

"Yeah but Legolas has this sweet bow, and he's all 'Pew, pew!'" Rolf fired a few air arrows over his chair. They caught Boyd in the chest, who choked dramatically and fell back onto the couch in the throes of death. "And all the dwarves have sick axes."

"Axes are pretty sick, I'll give you that," Boyd brought himself back to life to say. He glanced up to Oscar as Rolf chattered on about the other dork-characters of his dork-movie, and there was relief in every line of his brother's face. Boyd just rolled his eyes in response: Of course, idiot.

Because in all his years of maturity and breadwinning and half-fatherhood, Oscar had never once brought a date home. Boyd wasn't sure if he'd even been out on a date, either. He and Rolf had taken up too much time, and he was starting to feel guilty for it. Oscar should be able to relax. Boyd could babysit for one night—Rolf and himself. Especially if it meant things could finally work out with this coworker Oscar wouldn't shut up about.

xxx

The pan clattered as Oscar set it down on the burner. Oops. His hands were still shaking. He hoped that'd go away by the time Astrid showed up, but he was pretty sure that wasn't how it worked.

"What're you going to make?" Rolf asked as he hopped onto the counter.

"Can you sit somewhere else? That's my prep space." Rolf slid back off and plopped into his usual kitchen chair instead as Oscar reached for the garlic and started peeling cloves. "Thanks. I was thinking maybe marinara with shrimp? Something that seems fancy but is actually really hard to mess up."

"And cookies?" Rolf asked with a glance to the fridge, where the bowl of batter was chilling.

"Don't even think about it."

"Come on, just a little bit?"

"There will be some waiting for you when you and Boyd get home."

Oh. Wow. They were going to be gone. They were leaving him alone with Astrid. No distractions—from her, but also from Oscar and anything stupid he did. Maybe this was a dumb idea. Oscar was years out of the dating scene, despite his age. What if it was awkward? What if he said something embarrassing? What if she didn't want to meet up again afterward, even as a friend anymore?

Ow, his finger. Oscar hissed and popped it into his mouth, trying to suck garlic juice out of his cut, which stung like crazy. Maybe mincing with shaking hands had not been his best idea.

"You okay?" Rolf asked.

"Yeah. Will you grab me a band-aid?"

"BOYD!" Rolf hollered up the stairs instead of budging. "CAN YOU GRAB A BAND-AID?"

"WHY CAN'T YOU COME GET IT YOURSELF?" Boyd yelled back.

Oscar sighed and washed the cut off in the sink while he waited for one of them to win the yelling contest. He never had been sure of the rules or what meant a victory. Eventually Boyd ambled down, box in hand.

"Fine, I brought 'em, I brought 'em. You want help or something, Oscar?"

The reluctance with which he handed the band-aids over, like if their hands touched he would be compelled by the Force of Brotherhood to actually help, told Oscar that all Boyd wanted to do was run upstairs and get back to his video game. The offer was nice nonetheless.

"Nah, that would be cheating. But thanks, Boyd."

He concentrated on bandaging his finger. When he looked back up, Boyd had managed to get into the fridge and Oscar's bowl of cookie dough was now on the table as his brothers peeled the plastic wrap off of it.

"You guys!"

"Relax," Boyd complained. "Astrid isn't going to miss one cookie."

"Come on," Oscar complained right back. "I need everything to go well tonight, okay? Not you two sticking your fingers in all the courses!"

"Guess that means we can't sneak any shrimp, either."

"I hope you guys are out of the house before the shrimp even gets cooked!"

"Are you okay, Oscar?" Rolf asked then, surprising him. "You're really freaking out."

Oscar took a deep breath and leaned against the counter. It wasn't fair to lose his patience with the younger two just because of his nerves. "Yeah? Sorry. I've just never really done this before."

"It'll be fine," said Boyd. "All men in this family are irresistibly charming and sexy. Just look at me, if you need proof. It's a known fact." With a withering look to Rolf, he added, "You'll get there someday, champ."

Rolf just scowled.

"I'm not trying to be charming or sexy. I just...really like her. I keep playing it through my head, and I'm just now realizing that I don't know what to say when she arrives and maybe she's allergic to shrimp and what if I can't think of any small talk? She'll be here in an hour."

"So we'll leave in an hour and a half." Boyd shrugged like he was some kind of genius. "If you're nervous, we'll stick around until you guys are already having a conversation, and then we'll leave."

Oscar shook his head and went back to chopping garlic. His hands were steadier. "That's just too weird. You're my little brothers, not my wingmen. I shouldn't even be discussing all this with you."

"Why not? Brothers do this kind of stuff all the time. Just because you've always taken care of us doesn't mean you can't lean on us for anything."

"If you want us to stay a little, Oscar, please let us," said Rolf. "Do you think it's a good idea?"

"It does make me feel a little less nervous, I guess. Four is less awkward than two."

"Yahoo!" said Rolf, before he seemed to remember that cool ninth graders didn't still say "yahoo." Boyd just smirked before he walked away:

"You owe me a shrimp, though!"

"Put the cookie dough away!" Oscar called back. Rolf did it and followed Boyd upstairs.

xxx

The doorbell rang.

Oscar, hovering over the stove, got as close to jumping as Rolf had ever seen him: just a slight raise of his shoulders, but it was still a lot for Oscar.

"I'll get it," Rolf said helpfully as he ran for the door.

"Rolf, wait, no, let me-"

Too late. He opened it with a cheery grin, and the woman standing there smiled back at him. Astrid had always been very pretty, Rolf thought, but she looked especially nice today. She was wearing a white sundress and had clipped back some of her long black hair.

"Hi, Astrid! Hey Oscar, she's here!"

"Come in!" Oscar called, and Rolf stood aside to let her. She was still smiling. That was good, right?

Oscar still had his hands full cooking, so Rolf showed her a seat at the table. It was way nicer than usual—with an actual tablecloth, and Mom's old china, which they never actually used—but he didn't say so.

"Was the drive over okay?" Oscar asked from the stove. Astrid responded and Rolf just rolled his eyes. What a dummy. If this was a date, wasn't Oscar supposed to drop everything and go scoop her up and kiss her good? That's what Rolf would do. If Rolf could ever catch a date.

But maybe Oscar wasn't sure if Astrid liked him, yet. That might explain things, though it looked pretty obvious to Rolf. There was a pause in the conversation, and rather than let it stretch and get awkward, he jumped in to tell her all about the movie he was going to see with Boyd. And as he babbled, Astrid listening politely, he noticed Oscar's shoulders relax again. And as soon as Rolf ran out of stuff to say, Boyd arrived, right on cue.

"Yo, Astrid."

After that it was easy. He and Boyd kept Astrid occupied while Oscar focused on finishing dinner and making sure it looked nice and carrying everything to the table. Finally Boyd glanced at his phone and stood.

"We should go. It'll probably be pretty crowded."

Rolf hopped to his feet, so excited about the movie—the rare outing they didn't always have the money for, the time to spend with Boyd, who wasn't treating him like a baby—that he almost forgot to say goodbye to Oscar. He followed them both to the doorway.

"Hey," Oscar said in a low voice. "Thanks, guys."

Rolf looked past him. Astrid looked really comfortable at the table. She was studying the wine bottle.

"Oscar, where did you find this? It's my favourite."

"Really!" Oscar said back, pleased.

"Whatever, whatever," said Boyd. "Looks like you're set. Let's go, Rolf."

Rolf went.

xxx

Dinner went well. Dinner went surprisingly well.

Astrid really liked his cooking, and despite the more intimate change in atmosphere, they talked as easily as they always did at work. It started with the wine and went straight to siblings. Oscar had a lot of silly stories to share, and was surprised to find that Astrid had a few, as well.

When she shifted in her chair he suggested they move to the couch with the rest of the wine. He'd intended to put on the TV or something, but they just never stopped talking. He liked the way she curled up. Her knees were pretty. Her everything was pretty. She twirled her wine glass gently by the stem as she spoke and Oscar just watched. Her every motion was always so elegant.

"I guess your brothers will be home soon, right?" she asked, breaking his thoughts. He whipped out his phone to check the time.

"Oh. Wow. Yeah, the movie must be ending." He smiled sheepishly at her. "I didn't realize it was so late."

"Me neither," she said with a smile back. "I was having a very nice time."

Ping! Oscar glanced back at his phone. It was a text from Boyd: _Done. C u soon._

No. No no no no. Not today, little brother. Oscar's thumb was a flurry on the screen and he pressed "send" without proofreading: _U should go to Ike's for the night instead. Please. Super please._

"Are they on their way?" Astrid asked knowingly.

"Actually." Oscar felt like a frog had jumped into his throat and hoped he didn't sound like it. "That was Boyd just now. He and Rolf wanted to stay over at a friend's place, tonight."

"Hm." Astrid seemed fixed on the sip of red left in her glass. Slowly, Oscar reached out and touched her wrist.

"Do you want to stay a little longer?"

Just as slowly, Astrid smiled. "Yes. Thank you."

Oscar got up to dim the lights and put a movie on for them. They didn't watch it.

xxx

"You're kidding me," Boyd said as he scowled at his phone. He and Rolf hadn't packed pyjamas or toothbrushes or anything. And here Oscar was, telling them to clear off and fend for themselves for the entire night. Some brother!

He sighed and let it go. Some brother, denying himself all dating and fun and lots of his hard-earned money and all the nights he could have relaxed but made him and Rolf a nice dinner instead. And it wasn't like Ike's wasn't a second home. After Mom and Dad were gone, Greil had made it super clear that he and his brothers were welcome at any hour, and he and Rolf had crashed there plenty of times: when Oscar had a job interview early in the morning but they needed a ride to school, or that time he had the flu and Boyd was too young to cook for them all so they all stayed for three whole days. Elena had made soup. It was hella.

"Hey Rolf," he said to the dweeb who was zoning out, probably imagining being a stupid dorky elf with a stupid dorky bow. "How about we go to Ike and Mist's for the night?"

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah. Sleepover. Ike got that new shooter game yesterday. What if we went over to play and just never went home? We won't have to brush our teeth or anything. No rules, man. No rules."

"Really?" Rolf looked torn. "That sounds great, but...won't Oscar get mad if we don't come home and go to bed?"

"Maybe. Just let me handle that in the morning. I'll say you had no choice since I was driving."

"Uhg, Boyd." Rolf tried so hard to be chill now that he was in high school, tried so _hard_, but: "You're so cool."

"Yeah," Boyd said. Rolf ran ahead to the car. Boyd texted Oscar a quick "k" and slipped his phone back into his pocket before he followed. "Yeah, I'm pretty cool."

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><p><em>Author's Note: True Life: Oscar and Astrid are both slow movers so basically they get a whole night of little kisses and cuddles and Deep Talks until they fall asleep together and then she goes home in the morning and Oscar is like "BEST NIGHT EVERRRRRR" and Ignorant Boyd is like "Ew gross please don't ever bring this up."<em>


End file.
